Fasting Traditions Point to Commonalities in Major Religions

“All human cultures feast and fast,” said Rabbi Debra Cantor of B’nai Tikvoh Shalom in Bloomfield as part of a panel discussion on fasting celebrating at the Taste of Ramadan on June 3, 2018 in Avon, Connecticut. The Farmington Valley League of Light, a multi-faith community, co-sponsored the evening along with the Muslim Coalition and the Farmington Valley American Muslim Center. 

Imam Omer Bajwa, Muslim Chaplain and Director of Muslim Life at Yale, told the audience that Ramadan comes from a word meaning intense heat. If you heat iron and steel at extreme temperatures over time exposure to the heat will break them down making them malleable and you can shape them. Souls like iron over the year become hardened. Periodically, God is calling you to recalibrate, reform your soul. Ramadan is a fasting holiday, and fasting cleanses one’s soul.

“Fasting is a physical exercise and a spiritual discipline bringing ultimately spiritual enlightenment,” Bajwa said. “Restriction leads to expansion of mind, heart and soul.”

Fasting traditions in the four religions represented (Hinduism, Judaism, Islam and Christianity) shared many similarities such as deep reflection and giving to charity. All the religions share commitment to social justice, and caring for the poor and vulnerable.

“It is a chance to reflect upon who we are, who we ought to be, who God calls us to be and to recommit to what is right personally and as a society,” said Cantor. 

Dr. Shyamala Raman, a University of Saint Joseph professor and a representative from the Hindu tradition, said “Fasting is a spiritual exercise in contemplation and self-discipline in Hindu. It is a universally embedded prayer.” 

Hindus fast according to the phases of the moon as Jews and Muslims also follow the lunar calendar.

Rev. Frank Matera, of St. Mary’s Church in Simsbury, said Christians fast in secret to remain humble before God. The big fast is Lent, modeled after Jesus’ fast in the wilderness for 40 days and 40 nights. The three reasons Christians fast are to celebrate Easter, prepare for baptism, and confession. 

“It disciplines our body and purifies our spirit,” said Matera. “Fasting is the soul of prayer and mercy is the lifeblood of fasting. It brings one closer to God and makes one aware of the needs of others.”

It’s all about service to others
Bajwa described fasting as “a physical waking up and a spiritual waking up.” 

“One asks what kind of person am I and what kind of person do I want to become,” he said. “An intimate personal experience can lead to a collective consciousness.” Individual sins reflect community transgressions. 

Cantor quoted Abraham Joshua Heschel “Not everyone is guilty but all are responsible.”  Maybe, in a way, society as a whole created mass shootings and terrorism with its neglect of poverty and alienation.

“We have to take responsibility for what we do as a community,” said Bajwa.

A social media fast
Cantor also talked about taking a fast from screens and social media on Shabbos. Bajwa suggested we self-monitor the verbal violence online and on social media.  

“Fasting makes us think deeply about the way we use language,” Bajwa said. “God is found in our service to each other.”

Emptying to become spiritually full
Emptying to become spiritually full Raman remarked that “Fasting helps one self-empty so you can allow God to enter.”

Matera also echoed this sentiment about emptying the self and the weakness people feel during a fast. “In a moment of weakness we find strength,” he said.

“If you are filled with ego, there is no place for God to enter us,” said Cantor.

As the Muslims believe, humility is like a sprout buried deep in the ground. One has to bury it deep not shallow for it to develop and grow,” said Bajwa.  Just like the sprout, we have to take stock in deep reflection in order to grow and learn our true mission on earth to serve others. Fasting helps us do that.